Chicago Cubs vs New York Mets – Series Preview (September 23-25): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4
The Cubs (88-68) had a rough weekend in Cincinnati after securing a playoff spot, suffering a four-game sweep at the hands of the Reds. The issue continues to be an offense that produced just seven runs in the series. Chicago returns to Wrigley for the final week of the regular season, beginning with three against the Mets.
New York (80-76) was sitting pretty in late July with a 62-44 record and a firm grip on a playoff spot. Then they went 2-14 to suddenly find themselves in a dogfight for the final Wild Card. Then they stumbled through an eight-game losing streak earlier this month, and dropping two of three to the Nationals allowed the Reds to pull into a tie for the final playoff spot.
The Mets have the sixth-best offense in baseball with a .756 team OPS and 255 home runs. The middle of the lineup is absolutely stacked with Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso, and Juan Soto all having more than 25 homers. Soto has really come on with 42 dingers and a .934 OPS after a relatively slow start to his tenure in Queens.
It’s been much more of a struggle for New York’s pitching staff, especially with the team’s ERA sitting at 4.70 in the second half. Ace Kodai Senga suffered a hamstring strain in mid-June that cost him nearly a month, then he was optioned to Triple-A in early September following a very rough August. Clay Holmes has done a great job moving from the bullpen to a starting role, but the Cubs will miss him in the series.
While the bullpen has had some issues, closer Edwin Díaz is having a tremendous year with 26 saves and a 1.79 ERA. Even though the Mets are struggling, being in desperation mode should have them pulling out all the stops in this series.
The Padres have won three in a row and the gap for the top Wild Card is just 2.5 games, so the Cubs are going to need a couple more victories to secure home-field advantage in the first round. Even more important, the North Siders need to start playing better if they want to have any chance in October.
Game Time and Broadcast Info
- Tuesday, September 23 at 6:40pm CT on TBS and Marquee.
- Wednesday, September 24 at 7:05pm CT on ESPN.
- Thursday, September 25 at 6:40pm CT MLB Network and Marquee.
Starting Pitchers
| Date | Pitcher | Age | T | ERA | W/L | FIP | K/BB |
| 9/23 | Cade Horton | 24 | R | 2.66 | 11-4 | 3.53 | 2.88 |
| David Peterson | 30 | L | 3.98 | 9–6 | 3.47 | 2.37 | |
| 9/24 | Matthew Boyd | 34 | L | 3.20 | 13-8 | 3.60 | 3.68 |
| Jonah Tong | 22 | R | 5.94 | 2-2 | 4.23 | 3.00 | |
| 9/25 | Shōta Imanaga | 32 | L | 3.37 | 9-7 | 4.78 | 4.54 |
| Brandon Sproat | 25 | R | 3.94 | 0-1 | 2.40 | 2.50 |
What to Watch For
- Kyle Tucker is still nursing a calf injury and his status for the rest of the season is up in the air.
- Boyd has allowed four or more runs in five of his last six outings.
- Reese McGuire was the only really productive Cubs hitter in Cincinnati with a double and a homer in his start Saturday.
